NB "Kismet"

Painting time again!

 It's been a while since Kismet had a coat of paint... With a space booked in Stafford boat sanctuary I've got a good chance to get stuck in and make a proper job of it

Preparation is key. Once all the windows and cabin fixtures have been removed there follows a mad scraping, rubbing and scrubbing session.. The equivalent of 10 days solid work before we even see a paintbrush!

Sand painted non slip areas must be completely stripped and all other areas are rubbed back flat either to smooth sound paint or bare metal as appropriate.

One solid day stripping sand from the roof has been known to induce stigmata! The whole area was sanded back to bare metal in this case too.

 

The dock being ankle deep in dust and smeg, I pulled the boat out once prep was complete to clean the facility before opening any paint! (half a days work on its own!)

 Buckets of primer are in order to begin with. Here you can just make out the stem post, T-stud and hinge straps undercoated for red.

 I dare you rust.... to creep back from behind the windows after this treatment!


All coats are brush applied using traditional technique.

Gentle sanding between coats leads to a good finish, and ensures plenty of paint is left on the boat.

Serious logistics become involved to make sure all areas are undercoated, sanded, glossed... sanded and glossed again allowing for adequate drying time (I like to leave at least 24hrs between gloss coats), and ensure the boat is dry and ready on the deadline. 

 Inhaling vast quantities of paint fumes and thinners in an enclosed space is bad for your health.

 In this case a strange apparition has manifested itself in the stern door....! Hopefully its gone by the time the customer arrives to collect the boat!!

Windows and cabin fixtures reattached, Trevor Counsell arrives to practice the art 

of sign writing.

 Being more glamarous, signwriters always attract more attention than us in the lower orders of paint related activities! 

Coachlines and rear panels are as the customer specified. Windows are resealed with self adhesive neoprene tape which makes for neat clean edges on the finished job.

 

The view from the back of the boat is brightened up a bit with a hearty scallopy slide.

Probably have to keep the mug of tea (or dare i say tinny of beer) on the side now.... I don't want any marks on it!!!

 That's Kismet smartened up and ready for boating!

More paint jobs will be posted next year. All slots for 2016 are now booked, but I have availability in 2017 at the moment.

I wonder what I'll get asked to do next?  Job could be anything??!!  Feels like a bit of plumbing coming on!